This invention relates generally to a brake system, and more particularly to a brake system for braking a shaft of an apparatus subject to runaway to stop runaway.
There is a general need for means for stopping out-of-control or "runaway" apparatus before it causes any injury or damage to itself and/or to its surroundings. This need is particularly compelling with respect to conveyors which are steeply inclined, such as the conveyors used to load coal or ore into barges, since there is a significant risk that these conveyors will run out-of-control due to the large incline and mass of the material being conveyed. Because of the large mass of such material, if the conveyor becomes out-of-control there is least some risk that it will quickly dump so much material that the barge being loaded will be seriously damaged. A resolution of this problem is made especially difficult by the large amount of energy required to stop a runaway conveyor carrying such a large mass of material.